basketball player

Chapter 87 086: Rhythm Change

Bird and his assistant Pritchard sat in the luxury box of the Conseco Arena as usual, watching Henson, who suppressed the Celtics by more than ten points in the half game, couldn't help shaking his head with a smile.

"Since Henson took office, he has caused us a lot of trouble. First, he was fined $1, and then he held a party to lead the players. To be honest, I was a little angry when I saw the news yesterday. What time is it? He still brought the players to a party? But no matter what he did, this guy never forgot to bring the team victory!"

Bird looked at Henson, who was on the bench cheering for the players' goals. Perhaps in the eyes of others, this was the behavior of clowns.But in the eyes of Pacers fans and his general manager, Henson has become more and more likable.

"The Celtics have nothing to do with our fast offense, and after a party, the players' bodies are very excited. This makes our fast offense more smooth. I have to admit that Henson made a good move." This time, even Pritchard, who has always been demanding, praised Henson.

"Henson is a different coach. Let's see how far he can take the team this season. By the way, man, when was the last time we got 40 wins in a single season? It was the 05-06 season, right? At that time, Granger was still a rookie and Reggie Miller had just retired for a year."

"What are you trying to say, Bird."

"I would say, if Henson can get the team to 40 wins this season, I'm definitely going to be very grateful to him. Very, very grateful"

※※※

On the court, the red light on the backboard was on, and the buzzer sounded throughout the court.At the end of the halftime game, the Pacers, who had just been slaughtered by the Grizzlies, bottomed out and led the Eastern giants Celtics 58 to 45 by 13 points.Only Ray Allen scored in double figures for the Celtics in the halftime game, and Garnett, one of the Big Three, only scored a pitiful 33.3 points with a 5% shooting rate.

For the Pacers, only Horford scored in double figures for the time being, but most players scored between 8 and 9 points.This indicates that after the end of the game, the Pacers will once again have a group of teams that can score in double digits.

"It seems that Coach Henson's private party did not make the players relax, but made their bodies tense up. Look at the Pacers' devastating offensive in the first half of the game. The old giants simply cannot withstand such an impact." Kenny Smith smiled, after all, he had the upper hand in front of Barkley.

"I believe that the Celtics will definitely be able to regain their rhythm in the second half of the game. Don't forget, they are a championship team! In terms of the ability to control the rhythm of the game, the Celtics must be stronger than the Pacers!" Barkley waved his hand. This guy will not give in before the end of the game.

In fact, Barkley's remarks are not without reason.The Celtics are a mature team, 13 points behind at halftime is not fatal to them.As a championship-level team, their own adjustment ability is very good.If Henson thought that this way he could keep the victory in his hands, then he must be delusional.

After the players walked back to the locker room, everyone had smiles on their faces, and everyone was happy.The fast-paced offensive wave released the passion of the young players.

"Okay, guys, listen to me first." After letting the players rest for 2 minutes, Henson spoke.

As soon as he made a sound, the locker room fell silent in an instant.Henson was already very respected in the hearts of the players, not to mention after the party that made Henson the boss of the team.

"Beat the shit out of Bostonians, you guys have fun."

As soon as Henson said this, the players immediately echoed.

"Of course, the old men can't do it!"

"Didn't you see Ray Allen's expression? I really hope he won't be pissed off in the second half!"

"We'll make the Celtics despair in the second half, Boss!"

Henson nodded in satisfaction, the morale of the players was high. "I believe that in the second half of the game, you can beat the crap out of your opponent, provided that you listen to my command. In the second half of the game, let's slow down appropriately to increase the success rate."

The players looked at each other, and then looked at Henson in confusion.In the first half of the game, it was the Pacers' crazy fast-paced impact that made it difficult for the Celtics to parry.Why did Henson ask them to slow down in the second half?

"Don't think that the Celtics can be defeated so easily. In the second half of the game, they must have prepared countless defensive traps for everyone, just waiting for you to plunge into them. They thought we would continue to play fast, so we just didn't, and let their tactical arrangements come to naught. When I let you get up again," Henson said, raising his fist, "that's when we close the game!"

The players nodded one after another, and slightly suppressed the excessive passion in their hearts.

It is easy for young players to rise up in waves, and it is also easy to be beaten back to their original shape in waves.Instability is the biggest common problem among young people.If we continue to let everyone play fast in the second half, there is no doubt that the game will be messy, because the players can't stop themselves.

And the experienced Celtics are just waiting for you to mess around.But Henson knows how to help young people grasp the rhythm.

Just 80 seconds into the second half, Rivers called a timeout.Do you think he wants to arrange tactics?No, this timeout is purely to disgust the Pacers, trying to interrupt their fast pace.

Subsequently, the Celtics were as slow as possible on the offensive end, suppressing speed and hitting success rate.On the defensive end, the Pacers were forced to attack in the middle, trying to guide the Pacers' young people to hit the hardest part of the Celtics' defense.

Rivers thought his arrangement was perfect, after all, the Pacers' players and coaches were too young.Their game style can be summed up as just don't stop when you feel good, and run all the way.But as long as their rhythm is disrupted, they will confuse themselves.

But the reality is that Rivers did not do so.The Pacers' offense is still fast, but they are very patient. They don't end the battle in ten seconds like the first half.

The Pacers players were guided to the center again and again, but they patiently distributed the ball until the Celtics' defense was completely torn apart.Although this slightly slower offense was not as fierce or as good-looking as the first half, these were not what the Pacers and Henson needed.

They lead by a full 13 points. For the current Pacers, stability is more important than fierceness.

The Celtics are trying to recover the 13-point difference with positional warfare?Impossible, they need to switch offenses, catch mistakes, and use the Pacers' impatience.However, under the patient attack after Henson's variation, the Celtics couldn't grasp any of these things!
Halfway through the third quarter, the scores of both sides rose alternately.In other words, the Celtics did not narrow the gap significantly.

In the case of being unable to narrow the point difference for a long time, the Celtics became impatient instead.The noble Celtics naturally couldn't accept losing to a team like the Pacers, and Doc Rivers couldn't bear losing to Henson, a recognized layman.Gradually, the Celtics lost their steady rhythm and became more and more impatient on the offensive end.

In the fourth quarter of the game, Henson waved his hand and told everyone: "Speed ​​up, it's time for us to close the game!"

By the fourth quarter of the game, the physical fitness of the veterans of the Green Army was close to exhaustion.What about the young Pacers?They are still alive and well one by one.

Holiday and Granger led the Pacers with a wave of rapid impact, widening the point difference to 20 points, completely making the game lose suspense.

O'Neal and Garnett's sluggish footsteps frequently hurt the Celtics' basket.But if these two giants shrink the basket, Horford and Granger's long-range shots will not make it easy for the Celtics.

When the game was about to end with 3 minutes left, the Celtics, who were 23 points behind, were powerless.Rivers replaced all the veterans, and the distinguished champion coach finally raised the white flag in front of the "layman" he looked down upon!
"Coach Henson is simply a top rhythm master! His speed change in the second half of the game made Coach Rivers at a loss! Although it is a bit exaggerated to say this, but today, Coach Henson completely ate Rivers to death!"

Kenny Smith was full of praise for Henson, but Charles Barkley was dumb.Who would have thought that a coach who is keen on throwing a party actually commanded a nearly perfect game
After the game, the Big Three of the Celtics and Rivers left with their faces downcast and their heads bowed.Rivers also said yesterday that the Pacers' arrogance would make them pay on the basketball court. Who would have thought that in the end, it was his own arrogance that caused the team to be abused for a full 15 points.

And Henson, who was besieged by reporters 24 hours ago, suddenly became their "angel" at this time.

"There was nothing special about this game, and I didn't make any special arrangements during the intermission. The only thing I can thank is the party the day before yesterday that made the whole world laugh! Sorry, after the party we won at home and disappointed everyone who criticized me!"

The faces of the reporters were all pale, and it was really uncomfortable to be "slapped" in the face by Henson.

(End of this chapter)